allotment gardening: more than fresh veggies

In many respects, Riebeek Kasteel is typical of small towns in South Africa: An economy focused on local farming and the nearby cement factory. A single service station and a few small shops. A church that dominates the skyline. And an 'onderdorp' to house the workers well away from the town proper, where they won't bother the retired farmers.

In recent years, this particular town has seen a tourism makeover, with a dramatic increase in shops, restaurants and bed-and-breakfast establishments that cater to visitors from Cape Town and the growing number of city people who have bought property here. The town, along with the rest of the Riebeek Valley, has also seen a rebranding as the olive capital of the Western Cape, and numerous magazine articles have boosted the number of visitors on weekends.

All of this has done little, if anything, to reduce the extreme poverty of the onderdorp. But yesterday, a rainy Saturday, I visited a project that raises hope in a patch of grass next to what was once the Riebeek Kasteel railway station. Every weekend, local children converge on their community garden to plant and tend their vegetables, learn about the environment, and have some lunch.

The garden is an offshoot of a soup kitchen that was started in the winter of 2004. It was intended to supplement food donated by local businesses, but it has grown into something much more for the local community. With a hectare of land, and a tool shed installed just last week, the Riebeek Kasteel Gemeenskapstuin Projek feeds impoverished families, teaches gardening skills, provides a Saturday morning youth group, and inspires families to take pride in their homes and gardens.

As we sheltered from the rain in the new shed, Bridget Doyle (project co-ordinator) spoke about a number of families that have started growing vegetables in their own gardens, and others that have begun transforming muddy yards into more liveable spaces. This cast-off community appears to have little going for it, but it is indeed a community, with hopes and dreams and the ability to pull itself together.

Riebeek Kasteel has a growing drug problem. Tik (crystal meth) has recently emerged, raising concerns in the community. Bridget sees projects like this as an opportunity to strengthen the community and give people the means to fight drug abuse and the ills of poverty. In addition to the practical benefits of growing food, the project can provide children and adults with a sense of purpose and self-worth, and a focus on healthy activities.

This year, the project committee hopes to set up an irrigation system, increase the garden's contribution to the soup kitchen, continue training in organic gardening, provide education in life skills and conflict resolution to the youth group, equip the tool shed, plant trees, establish a children's play park, and provide a picnic and braai area by the garden.

To achieve these aims, the Riebeek Kasteel Gemeenskapstuin Projek needs money. As the project meets the requirements of the government's Food Security Programme, the Department of Agriculture provided the new shed, and will contribute funds for fencing, tools and organic gardening training. Other organisations provide support in various ways, but the project has a number of costs that are not fully covered. To make a donation, or to find out other ways to support the project, send me an email and I can put you in touch with the appropriate committee member.

Comments

[Bridget]

Thank You Rory...see you guys on Saturday?